ROGUE RIVER WARS.
CHAPTER I.
Rascalities of the Rogue-river Indians—Lane's First Effort to Treat With Them—Naming a Chief—Appointment of an Indian Commission to Make Treaties—Extravagant Expenditure—Dart Made Superintendent—Outrages by the Snake Indians Causes Trouble With the Rogue-rivers—Murder of Dilley—Travelers Attacked—Kearney's Skirmish, and Death of Captain Stuart—Volunteering—Lane Appears Again—Kearney's Final Battle—Indian Prisoners Delivered to Governor Gaines—The Port Orford Settlement Attacked—Massacre on the Coquille—Escape of T'Vault and Others—Troops and Indian Agents—Gaines and Skinner—Colonel Casey's Operations—Arrival of Fresh Troops—Camp Castaway—Renewal of Troubles in Rogue-river Valley—Elisha Steeple and Agent Skinner—Fight at Big Bar—Treaty Made With Chief Sam—Neglect of the Federal Government—Murders by the Modocs—McDermit's and Ben Wright's Campaign—Expedition of John E. Ross—Punishment of the Mocods.
It has been mentioned in the history of the Cayuse war that Lane, governor and superintendent of Indian affairs, was absent in southern Oregon during the trial of the Indian prisoners at Oregon City. The occasion of this absence was the conduct of the Rogue-river Indians towards white men traveling to and from the gold fields of northern California. They had attacked a party in camp at Rock Point, and robbed them of their season s gains, as well as of all their other property, the men only escaping by fleeing to the woods.
Other complaints, and the well-known rascalities of these Indians, led the superintendent to visit them, to change, if possible, this condition of travel on the California road. His party consisted of fifteen white men, and as many Klickitat Indians under their chief, Quatley. They overtook and escorted some cattle drivers as far as the south bank of Rogue river, where Lane encamped, sending word
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